{"id":535050,"date":"2026-03-14T03:10:20","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T03:10:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/535050\/"},"modified":"2026-03-14T03:10:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T03:10:20","slug":"so-close-carson-mattern-in-break-all-daycaught-with-200-m-to-go","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/535050\/","title":{"rendered":"So close: Carson Mattern in break all day\u2026caught with 200 m to go"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ooohf, bike racing can be cruel. Ancaster, Ont.\u2019s Carson Mattern<\/a>, guest riding for Quebec team Les Rouleurs<\/a>, had a loooong day away on Friday at the Tour of Antalya. Stage 2, a 132-km race around Kadriye, T\u00fcrkiye, saw Mattern get away with American Patrick Welch (APS Pro Cycling by Team Cadence Cyclery) and Mehmet Kanat (MBB Continental Cycling Team), only to be caught oh-so-close to the line. The trio stayed away for the majority of the stage, a whopping 110km. Unfortunately, they were caught just whiskers before the finish line.<\/p>\n

The sixth edition of the race has riders from 14 different countries competing against Turkish teams.<\/p>\n

Filling in gaps from racing in France<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m racing here with Les Rouleurs from Gatineau as a guest,\u201d Mattern said. \u201cAn opportunity came up to come do some UCI racing with them in the gaps I had in my French racing calendar, so of course I took it. I have been really enjoying it, the guys are all really awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n

His usual team for 2026 is Gers Cycling Development. It\u2019s an amateur team from the south of France, near Toulouse.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been racing the national elite races and the Coupe de France with them this year. It\u2019s a really nice calendar. We\u2019ve gotten through some nastier races with some elevation and are starting to get some real opportunities,\u201d he said. Last Sunday he raced the Grand Prix d\u2019Ouverture Pierre Pinel, finishing 7th.<\/p>\n

Great ride by Carson Mattern today! pic.twitter.com\/YmI35kBmrr<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Canadian Cycling Mag (@CanadianCycling) March 13, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cToday was so bloody close, not just to a cool result but also to meeting some selection criteria for the road worlds too,\u201d he said. \u201cBut right now points and youth GC are in play for me here in Antalya\u2026 so it will make for an interesting weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stage 3 goes from Korkuteli to Kadriye with a very tough finish: a 30-km climb with the last 4 km at almost 10 per cent grade.<\/p>\n

The final day of racing is Kadriye to Antalya for a total of 140.5 km. Right now Mattern sits eighth overall, 13 seconds back, as well as eighth in the points classification. In the youth competition, the 22-year-old sits fourth.<\/p>\n